


One Pole, Two Benders

by Sees_writes



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Bloodbending (Avatar), Could be romantic Zutara, F/M, Firebending & Firebenders, Hurt Katara, Hurt Zuko (Avatar), Katara & Zuko (Avatar) Friendship, They kind of become each others comfort characters, Waterbending & Waterbenders, Zutara
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2020-11-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:47:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27552553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sees_writes/pseuds/Sees_writes
Summary: (Takes place during Book 2)Katara and Zuko find themselves tied up in a strange village with no memory of how they got there. The people of the town call them demons and with embedding doom towering over them, they have no way to escape, unless they can work together.Can the two enemies over come their differences and make it out alive?I don't know read to find out.
Relationships: Katara & Zuko (Avatar)
Kudos: 10





	1. A Wooden Pole

-  
Katara did not remember how exactly she had gotten there, the sun beating down on her, the fearful gazes of the villagers, the rough ropes digging into her wrists. 

She tried to wriggle her hands to create some room between the robes and her skin but didn’t have much success. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the wooden pole that she was bound to. She was seated on multiple flat planks of hardwood that raised her just a few inches above the ground.

It was so dang hot. There was no shade around her and the sun was merciless. She couldn’t waterbend even if she wanted to. She was dehydrated, exhausted, sore, and probably becoming sunburned.

More villagers passed by and gawked at her like she was an animal on display. One child approached her with a curious look. A woman, probably his mother, grabbed him and roughly pulled him back away from Katara and started furiously whispering to him. She couldn’t really make out what they were saying, but she was pretty sure that she caught the word demon. 

Great. Not only do they have her tied to a pole in the middle of their villages, in the heat, but they think I’m a demon. Katara thought and tried to re adjust to sit slightly more comfortably. 

Her blue dress was sticking to her body annoyingly as she continued to sweat.

She took a deep breath in and tried to recall what had happened to lead her to this position. She was pretty sure she remembered waking up and preparing breakfast for their group. Yes, she had, she remembered Toph complaining about Sokka’s complaining about their food situation. Ok, then she remembered them traveling for a little while before touching down near a town. She was pretty sure that she had gone into the town and purchased some food stuff. After that her memory started to get foggy. 

There was a growl from behind her as the other person strapped to the pole tugged at his bounds. 

Oh right, there was also that problem on top of that one. 

The prince of the Fire Nation struggled a little more before giving back up. She definitely remembered running into him. 

After a while a man with a sword strapped to his side approached them. Katara vaguely remembered him. He must have been one of the ones to capture them. He had a reed pipe and a bag attached to the hip opposite his sword. He walked up to them from Katara’s left. He stepped up onto the wooden stage that they were sitting on and started to circle in front of her, inspecting her like one might inspect a Horsecow. When he came around on the firebenders side the teen tensed.

“Release us now.” Zuko growled at the man.

The man made a hmph noise and continued around them. 

Katara felt the heat rise off of the firebender as his temper rose. She saw a jet of flame fly towards the man. The man side stepped it and gave a grunt of annoyance.

“Forgot you fire demons can breath fire.” He mumbled.

He continued back around and Katara noted that he had moved to a safe distance away from the firebender.

Lucky. Katara thought.

How helpful being able to breath her element would be. 

The man finished his inspection, stepped down off the stage, and returned to his hut. 

“Well that worked smoothly.” Katara couldn’t stop herself from muttering.

Zuko stiffened.

“At least I am trying something.” He growled. “Worthless Watertribe Peasant.” He mumbled under his breath.

“Excuse me?” Katara growled and tried to shift to glare at him. “I am not the one that was on a fool's errand to capture the Avatar.”

He hissed out a breath but didn’t reply.

“Oh the royal pain in the butt doesn’t have anything to say?” Katara taunted.

The heat rose again and she flinched. The way they were tied made it nearly impossible to move. Their arms were interlocked with their hands bound behind their back. So every time his temper flared and his heat rose, her arms were singed. 

Unfortunately his temper seemed to rise a lot. 

“Last time we met, I didn’t try to capture your precious Avatar.” He hissed.

He had a point, last time she had seen him had been when they were fighting Azula in the abandoned town. He and his uncle had readily fought with them against the othe royal pain in the butt. She hoped his uncle was ok, he seemed like a nice man, nothing like the stories that she had heard about the Dragon of the West. Toph had also talked about him after they had departed him. 

She didn’t say anything else, hoping to spare her arms, and his heat died back down. She also unconsciously noticed that he preferred to turn his head to the right, her left, to speak with her.

The sun was getting ready to set and she was parched for water. She tried to wriggle around a little more in preparation for the long night ahead. From what she could tell, she could move around more, probably because she was smaller than the smoke breather that she was currently tied to and the ropes were less tight. 

Cooking fires were lit and the scent of roasting meat filled the air. Her stomach grumbled and she sighed. She was pretty sure the last thing she ate was nuts.

She hoped that Toph, Aang, and Sokka were having better luck than she was right now. Maybe they’d swoop down here at any moment and rescue her. It was all wishful thinking of course. She had no idea where she was, and no idea how far away she and Zuko had been dragged from where they met. 

She let her leg drop to the ground, but hissed in pain when it made contact. There was a burn running up her leg from her earlier fight. She just wanted some water, or any drink at this point. 

The sun finally set and the moon began to rise. It was a waxing crescent, she noted. Katara felt the draw of the moon and sighed, she would need water to do any kind of damage. The air cooled notably and she happily breathed in. Whoever these people were, and whatever they were planning to do with them, she hoped would get on with it soon so she could have a better opportunity to escape. That was her main priority right now. Escape and get back to her friends. Without getting injured, or recaptured, or leading a certain firebender to the Avatar.

It was like waiting back in the Southern Water Tribe. During the winter months, the sun would at times not be seen for weeks. During those times, they all had learned to be patient and not give up hope in the darkness. Now was no different. She was just waiting for a different sun to rise.  
-  
Zuko watched the village's inhabitants closely. There was something strange about this place. Besides the fact that they thought he was a demon and had him tied to a pole. 

All the huts looked like they had simple wooden structures with mud slapped on top. Not anything like the other Earth Kingdom towns he had seen. Exhaustion tugged at his mind as the sun set. It was the habit of most firebenders to sleep with the sun and wake with it. He fought to stay awake to make sure no one caught him by surprise again. Somehow they had knocked them out before dragging them here. He didn’t know how long he had been out, for all he knew, he could have been asleep for a full three days. It sure felt like it. 

He took a deep breath in and slowly let it out. Warmth spread through his body to fight the cooler temperatures. He was starving, but he wouldn’t let his captures know that. 

He felt the waterbender shift around behind him. Even if he did escape, he would have to deal with the girl. He had no desire to follow her to the Avatar. His uncle's words had broken through his stubbornness. He just wanted to escape his sister and forget about everything that has to do with the Avatar, of course that was pretty hard when he kept running into them. Why is it now, when he doesn't want anything to do with them, does he effortlessly run into them? 

He wished for the 100th time that he had stuck with his uncle instead of running off to try to get struck by lightning, just to test out his new skill. He leaned his head back against the wooden pole. It was covered in some kind of substance that didn’t allow him to burn through it. They probably had held other firebenders before him. 

Sleep was starting to drag him into its clutches. He kicked himself to keep awake. 

He focused once again on the people wandering through the village. They looked like normal peasants. Maybe their clothes were more worn out than other villages, but other than that they looked like any other village. Then what was it about them that just wasn’t sitting right? 

Zuko looked up at the stars and tried to make out familiar constellations. He thought he spotted the twin dragons off to the east. That was the only one he could see from his position. He had studied astronomy in school back in the capital. It had been a boring period, long night looking at the stars when he could have been sleeping. 

Speaking of sleep, he felt himself drifting off. The pull of the sun was overpowering his willpower. He finally gave in and fell into a restless sleep.


	2. The Boy and the Demons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Suffering, anger, but a new character (he's not canon)

They had been tied to the pole for three days. Katara’s lips were chapped and she was drifting in and out of unconsciousness. Dew had covered her in the morning and she had happily licked up as much as she could but she was dehydrated and fading. They hadn’t given them any food either. Behind her Zuko groaned and tried to shift around but his bindings kept him mostly in place. She couldn’t help but feel pity for him. He was suffering as much as she was in the unrelenting heat. 

The villagers had stopped ogling them and instead now just cast them side glances. Some showed her pity, but most was still fear. Some of the men would throw things or spit on them when they passed. Both benders had multiple bruises and small cuts from the abuse.

Her head slumped forward as a wave of dizziness came over her. She must have made a noise because the firebender tensed.

“Katara?” Her name sounded foriegn on his tongue, his accent was interesting too.

Her mind drifted as unconsciousness threatened to overtake her again. 

“Hey, how long are you gonna hold us here without food or water?” She heard Zuko shout at the villagers.

More shouting insued but it was all foggy and distorted. 

She was jolted when heat licked up by her arm. She lazily looked over and gasped when she saw a flame. 

There were screams and suddenly something cold sloshed over them both.

Water! 

She opened her mouth and tried to catch as much as she could. But as soon as it was being poured over them, it was gone. 

How close her element was, but she was still stuck. 

The cruelty of it overwhelmed her. She was pretty sure she started crying. But there wasn’t much liquid coming from her eyes. There was now a crowd standing watching them. They were talking to each other but not moving much. One young boy in the crowd was watching her with pity. Her throat hitched as she sobbed. 

Zuko listened to the keening of the Water Tribe girl. If he was struggling with thirst, he could only imagine what she was going through.

As unfair as it all was, crying wasn’t going to get her anywhere. Katara sniffled and tried to wipe her nose on her sleeve. She bit her tongue to stop herself from making anymore noise. 

She focused on controlling her breathing and soon she had regained her composer. The water had cooled off her skin and offered some relief from the sun. Anywhere the water was on her skin, she focused on seeping into her sore muscles. She couldn’t heal herself fully, but she could return a little strength to her limbs and the few injuries that she had sustained from the fire fight started to heal over.

The smell of burned fabric and hair filled Katara’s nose and she glanced at where the flame had been. There was a black patch on Zuko’s right shoulder from what she could see. 

“Did you light yourself in fire?” She asked, her tongue felt thick in her mouth.  
“My shirt. It was the only way we were gonna get any kind of water.” He mumbled back.  
“Did you hurt yourself?” She could not believe she just asked her enemy that.

He was silent for a little bit, maybe more from shock than avoiding.

“No, not really.” He finally said.

He didn’t mention the new burn spot on his shoulder. He had done what needed to be done to get some relief from his thirst.

Katara sighed and let herself relax a little. The small amount of water had been just barely enough to rouse her.

The empty pit in her stomach was still bothersome but it was easier to ignore than the need for water. 

The rest of the day slipped by in a blur. She noticed the same boy that had watched her earlier continue to glance at her whenever he passed. Katara dismisses it as curiosity, he looked like he was probably 8 or 9 years old.

Night fell and the moon rose, it was starting to near a half moon. After the first few nights, she quickly realized that Zuko fell asleep pretty soon after the sun fell, just while she seemed to wake up more. 

Must be a fire bender thing. Katara thought.

She looked up into the moon's pale face. She prayed, not for the first time, to Princess Yue. She asked for any kind of help, a sign, a way out, anything really at this point.

She was just starting to drift off when a scuffle in the dirt reawakened her. Standing a little ways away from her was the little boy. He was watching her with big brown eyes. She offered him a little smile before lowering her head back down. 

He looked around to make sure no one was around before edging closer. 

“Are you really a demon?” He whispered.

Katara’s eyes widened. 

This was the first person in the village to actually speak to her. 

She shook her head.

“No.” She gave a little chuckle.  
“But they all say you are.” He pointed to Zuko. “And he breathes fire.”  
“He’s a firebender.” Katara winced at her raspy voice.

The boy gave her a blank stare.

“Whaz that?” 

“You don’t know what a fire bender is-?” She asked before falling into a coughing fit. 

Her throat was dry and starting to fail her.

The boy looked around fearfully, probably worrying that her hacking was going to get him discovered. 

“Wait here.” He said before trotting off quickly.

Where else am I going to go? She mentally asked him as he disappeared. 

Zuko shifted behind her. He sounded awake.

“What was that?” He rasped.  
“Shh.” Katara quickly hushed him. “Don’t say anything.”

He gave a grunt but didn’t ask anymore questions.

The boy returned a few moments later with a bucket of water. 

Katara stared hungrily at it. He carefully carried it over and and set it down in front of her, sloshing a little onto her dress.

He started to apologize but she barely heard it as she dunked her head into the water. She took multiple big gulps of water before resurfacing for air. She finally slowed down and leaned back. 

“Thank you.” Katara whispered to the boy.  
“Your welcome.” He said as he blushed.

Zuko shifted behind her, probably trying to see what was happening.

The boy noticed and his eyes widened in fear. 

“It’s ok.” Katara assured. “He’s not going to hurt you.” 

The firebender grunted in annoyance but didn’t say anything to contradict.

“He needs water too.” Katara said.

The boy hesitated.

“I swear he won’t do anything, right.” She tugged her arm to jar the prince.  
“Arg, I won’t hurt you.” He grumbled.

The boy carefully lugged the bucket over to Zuko. When he set it down some sloshed onto his shirt. He swore before dunking his head into the water. 

The boy watched the two strange people gulp down the water with fascination. His mom and dad said that these were demons that could control the elements. That they disguised themselves as humans to terrorize the town, but these two looked like regular humans.

Zuko lifted his head from the bucket and looked the boy up and down. The boy shivered as he took in the golden glare of the boy. That wasn’t natural, neither was the girls, he had never seen blue eyes before. A scar occupied the left side of this teens face, causing Maan to wince a little. 

“Why are you helping us.” The flame demon asked him.  
“Um…” The boy shuffled uncomfortably.  
“Hey, can't you just be grateful?” Katara growled at him.  
“I just want to know why.” The golden gaze alighted on him again.

The young boy swallowed.

“You guys don’t look like demons.”  
“Why do people keep calling us demons?” Zuko asked.  
“You can control the elements.” The boy replied.

Zuko cocked his head curiously.

“Do you not know what bending is?” Katara asked.

The boy moved so he could face both of the strangers. He sat on his haunches and hugged his knees. The boy shook his head at the waterbender.

Both of the benders looked at each other, well, as well as they could.

“What is your name?” She asked.  
“Maan.” He replied.  
“Ok Maan, my name is Katara and his name is Zuko.” He nodded in understanding. 

She paused as she tried to piece together her next words. How do you explain bending to someone who has never heard of it?

“Maan, is there anybody in your village that can control the elements?” She decided upon.  
“Nope.” He gave a slight shake of his head. 

Zuko sucked in a breath. That's what had been bugging him. This far into the Earth Kingdom, almost every town he had passed had a few Earth Benders.

“Ok well, where we are from, there are all kinds of people that can control, or bend, the elements.”

She watched his eyes widen in the pale moonlight. 

“There are Waterbenders, Firebenders, Earthbenders, and Airbenders. I am a waterbender from the Southern Water Tribe. Zuko is a Firebender from the Fire Nation.” She listed them and Maan didn’t miss the way she spat out the last few words.

Zuko made a noise.

She twisted to look at the prince.

He shrugged.

“Well there is A airbender.” He muttered.

Katara suddenly remembered why she disliked him so much.

Maan watched them with a confused but interested look.

“What happened to them?”  
“That doesn’t matter.” Katara said gently and returned her gaze to the boy.

Maan watched as the Fire demon, or firebender, as Katara called it, tense up and dropped his head. Why does he look guilty?

“Bending is a big part of our cultures. We use our bending to help us do tasks-”  
“Like what?” He fully sat down and scooted closer to the girl.  
“Well, I can use my bending to heal others.” Katara explained.  
“Really?”  
“Yep!” 

As Zuko listened to the two talk, he couldn’t help but notice the way that the waterbender seemed to swell with happiness when talking about her bending. No one he knew got this happy talking about Firebending. Well maybe Uncle Iroh. Fire was the element of power. It took great care to learn how to conquer it and use it to fight. It was a tool for him to use, but she talked about it as an extension of herself, or even as its own entity.

“You currently live in the Earth Kingdom, which is ruled by the Earthbenders.” Katara was explaining to Maan.

Talking about the nations and bending had made her feel the lightest she has felt in days. It was a nice distraction from her current situation.

“Really? I’ve never seen one. Actually, I think you two are the first benders I ever seen!” He smiled and revealed a gap toothed grin.  
“How old are you?” Katara asked.

He counted on his fingers and held up eight with one finger raised half way.

“I’m eight and a half!”  
“Wow…” She trailed off.

By the time she was eight, she had been through multiple Fire Nation raids and the loss of a loved one. She had taken on many responsibilities around her tribe and also was trying to fill in the missing place in their home.

When Zuko was eight, he had been training for a few years to master his bending. He was struggling to keep up with Azula who was in the spotlight of their father, and already having his life laid out for him. If his uncle died on campaign and his father took the throne, he would be the crowned prince. His days had been filled with grueling lessons and etiquette. His mother had been the saving grace for him.

Neither of their lives had matched up with this carefree child. 

Maybe there is a reason there are no benders here. Zuko thought. 

“Maan.” The boy looked over at him. 

Zuko didn’t miss the way he hunched his shoulders a little at an attempt to be smaller. He let out a breath. He didn’t particularly want to be an intimidating person, like he had been on his ship. He used to think it was how you gained respect. You made people fear you. Now he realized that it was more cowardice and ignorance that made you make people fear you for respect.

“What happens if someone is born an Earthbender here?” 

He opened his mouth to answer but a pair of voices interrupted him. 

Maan shot up to a standing position and looked around. There were two men exiting one of the nearer huts. Maan grabbed the bucket, splashing some on himself and Zuko, quickly bowed, then dashed off into the darkness. 

The two men staggered over by the pole before pausing. Both men hawked up a wad of spit and aimed for the benders. One landed on Zuko’s foot. They muttered a few profanities before continuing on their way. Zuko growled and flames snorted out of his nose in irritation. 

He noticed the waterbender flinch slightly before struggling to shift around. He turned his head to try to see what she was doing and noticed her trying to wipe her face on her sleeve. 

That explains the second wad. 

After the men disappeared, they sat in silence for a while.

“I knew something was off about the town.” Zuko muttered.

Katara made a hm noise.

“I noticed that something seemed to be missing. It was the lack of benders, and the lack of war damage.”  
“Maybe they have the right idea.” She mumbled. 

Pretty soon after, they both drifted into sleep.

Katara found herself seated in a prison cell. She glanced around in confusion. Around her  
were other prisoners of varying age. 

Something moved out of the corner of her eye. It was a rat. She normally would have scrambled away but she found herself unable to move. Suddenly her hands started moving without her permission. 

She watched them wave in front of her and gasped when the rat suddenly started to move and dance with her hands. 

Katara suddenly jolted awake. The moon had fallen behind the horizon and the sky was starting to brighten.

What in La’s name was that?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, so Maan is not a canon character, he is unique to this story. Is it weird that I am already attached to him? Aaaaand what is this weird thing with Katara... Thank you for reading!


	3. Steel and Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fight scene lets goooo. (Slight gore warning)

Over the next few days, Maan would sneak them water and even some food when it was dark. He usually wasn’t able to stay for very long because the town leaders now insisted on having a guard out near the pole.

Neither Katara or Zuko complained though. Maan seemed to be the only one to be their ally.  
During the days, the benders would pass a few words to each other. They still had no idea what the village leaders were going to do with them. Or if they were just going to keep them tied to the pole for the rest of their lives. 

More of the strange dreams came to Katara. On the third night, she realized that they weren’t dreams but memories. But they weren’t her memories. She had never been in a Fire Nation prison, and she had never used bending on a rat before. She didn’t know what any of it meant.

On the 8th day after Maan started helping them, a town meeting was called. The people circled around the pole. The leader of the town was the man that had circled them on the first day. His name was Laoh. He stood before Katara and faced the townspeople.

“You are probably wondering why I called you here today.” he announced to the crowd. 

There was a slight murmur in response.  
Zuko felt Katara shifting and wondered if she was thinking the same thing he was. Maybe they will finally explain why we are just tied here.

“I will get straight to the point then.” Laoh raised his hands to quell the murmurs.  
“Someone has been helping these demons.” He declared and motioned to the benders.

Now the townspeople went silent.

Laoh had started to stride back and forth slowly in front of Katara. 

“Look at them.” he pointed to her. “They look better today than they did a week ago. Someone has been aiding these monsters.” He roared to the crowd.  
“Whoever it is, please step forward and your punishment will not be as severe as it would be if you continued to hide.”

Katara searched the crowd for the big brown eyes that belonged to Maan. She couldn’t spot him, which was good. If he was out of sight he was out of target.

No one stepped forward. No one moved at all.

Laoh straightened.

“Fine, maybe we can draw you out another way.” He motioned to two burly men that had been standing off to the left of him. “Rehen, Ri.”

They approached the pole.

Katara stiffened in as they stalked up to them. They came around on Zuko’s side instead. Zuko watched them come to stand in front of him. One had light brown hair while the other had darker mud colored hair. Mud looked at light brown with a glint in his eye.

“Do I get the honors Rehen?” 

Light brown or Rehen nodded. Ri smirked and without any warning, slammed his foot into Zuko’s mid section.

Katara felt the whole pole shake as something slammed into it. Zuko grunted and his arms tugged against hers. Another jolt, another grunt. She tried to twist her head to see what was happening but was jarred once again and a cough came from behind her. 

Zuko doubled over and brought his knees up to protect his midsection. Rehen kicked him in the side and he felt something pop. Another blow to his other side had him wheezing for breath. A punch to the head had him seeing stars. 

“Hey what are you doing?” Katara yelled at Laoh.  
“Hush demon.”He snarled and continued to watch.

More blows rained down on Zuko and he tried to curl into a ball with little success. Finally the blows stopped and he coughed up blood. The two goons stepped back and admired their work. 

None of the bystanders had moved. 

“Hmm, tougher than I thought. Maybe this one will draw someone out.” He flicked his gaze to Katara.

Ri and Rehen advanced.

“You cowards.” Zuko hissed.

They stopped and glared at him.

“You attack people when they are bound and helpless.” He spat a wad of blood on the ground by their feet.  
“It’s a miracle any of these people listen to you. You just have others do your dirty coward’s work for you.” he continued to taunt.

Pay attention to me, not her you Froglizards. Zuko found himself thinking as he narrowed his eyes.

“Excuse me?” Laoh growled and advanced, coming to a stop in front of Zuko.  
“You heard me, coward.” Zuko sneered.  
“Untie him.”

The goons looked at Laoh in confusion.

“Do it. Now.” They came forward and cut his bindings.

Zuko couldn’t help the sigh of relief that left his chest as his hands were freed. His arms were untangled from the Waterbenders and he struggled to stand. Bracing himself on the pole, he brought himself up to his full height. He happily noted that he had just a little height on the man. 

Laoh waved the goons away and glared at the now freed teen. 

Zuko dropped into a fighting stance, he was a little off balance but one good hit was all he needed. He winced as each breath caused sharp pains to spark through his midsection.

Laoh pulled a sword out of its sheath on his side, he focused in on Zuko’s left scarred side. 

The prince smiled internally, not noticing the man's gaze, this would be easy. He defeated General Zhao in an Agni Kai, he could defeat a non bender with a sword, right?

Katara strained to see what was happening behind her. The sudden absence of the firebender was strange after being stuck together for more than a week.

Zuko narrowed his eyes before letting out two quick punches of flame, Laoh ducked and dodged. The firebender quickly shot more fire in his direction, trying to not give him a chance to recover. Laoh rolled away from the flame and slashed at Zuko. He stumbled back before throwing more fire at him.

The townspeople all watched in wrapt interest as the pair fought, steel against flame. As Katara scanned the audience again for reaction, she spotted Maan. He was staring in fear at the battle that was happening behind her.

Laoh rolled again, bringing him next to Katara. Zuko advanced, careful to not hit the waterbender. Laoh made another lunge at the prince, he rolled behind him and attacked him on his left side. Zuko whirled trying to keep his good eye on the swordsman, but Laoh came up and nicked his arm. Katara winced as blood began to pour down Zuko’s arm. Zuko clamped a hand over the wound and cauterized it, he couldn’t afford to lose blood, and Laoh was proving to be a hard opponent. Suddenly Zuko’s vision faded out as dizziness overtook him and he stumbled back blindly. 

“Look out!” Katara screamed at him.

The dizziness passed in time for him to see the butt of Laoh’s sword connect with his face. He was down. Laoh started kicking him now, letting his anger out on the prince. 

“Stop! Can’t you see he’s down? Stop please.” Katara cried at him. 

He didn’t seem to hear.

Katara watched helplessly as Zuko got the life beat out of him. If only she could bend! 

Zuko knew he had to get up, but every attempt got him knocked back down. His vision blurred and Loah’s face was replaced with a more familiar face. One with golden eyes that matched his own.The golden crown glinted in the sunlight. He was frozen in fear before another kick brought him back to reality.

He growled and bunched his legs up. When the next blow hit he launched his legs towards Laoh’s head and shot flame from his feet. Laoh stumbled back and struggled to put out the flames that were now eating his clothes. 

Zuko rolled over onto his hands and knees and sucked in breath. He needed to control his breathing and his own fears or he wouldn’t be able to firebend effectively. Laoh tore off his outer jacket and advanced on the prone bender.

Zuko spat out another glob of blood and forced himself up. He snorted flames and rose off the ground. Laoh made another lung but Zuko blocked him. Laoh made another charge, there was less and less grace in his attacks as he grew angrier and less in control. Unfortunately Zuko was quickly weakening. More cuts marred his arms and the toll of the many days tied up were overtaking him

One moment he was standing, the next he was on the ground with blood pouring into his good eye.

Sharp hits were hammering into his back. 

This guy has some serious anger issues, Zuko thought drunkenly.

He was aware of someone yelling next to him, not that it was doing much besides give him a headache. 

Katara was screaming every profanity she had ever heard or learned at Laoh. Zuko was laying on the ground beside her curled into a ball with his eyes screwed shut as Laoh continued to strike him.

How could she help?

There was no way to bend or escape. If only she could spit icicles. 

Wait. 

She sucked in a breath and let it cool in her throat. She remembered doing this to Jet, but then she had already drenched him in water and she just froze him. She needed to hit Laoh directly. She quickly exhaled and cool air blew over them, but nothing else happened.

Katara cursed and took another breath in. How did Aang do it? She thought back to every time she had seen Aang bend his breath. 

Katara sucked in another breath. She let the cold build up longer in her throat, she took aim again, focusing on any bare skin. She exhaled and icy frost swirled towards him, freezing any sweat on his body. 

Laoh yelped and staggered back away from Zuko, slapping at his arms as the frost burned his skin. The few burns that he had gained froze over as well. His skin began to change color and welts popped up, Katara knew that the damage had also gone deeper than the skin though. She might have been sick under normal circumstances, but right now she was too angry to feel badly.

Zuko was suddenly aware that the hits had stopped. He slowly opened his eyes and saw the Waterbender girl glaring behind him. He tried to raise himself onto his arms but fell back to the ground with a groan. 

Laoh dropped onto his knees and tried to get his shirt off but it was frozen to his skin. 

“Tie him back up.” He snarled at Ri and Rehen.

He took off towards his hut as the goons dragged Zuko back to the pole. Katara now noticed that he hadn’t completely escaped her attack on Laoh, he had a few patches of ice on his skin.

“Wait, he needs a doctor.” Katara told them.  
“Demons don’t get doctors.” The Ri replied coldly.  
“He’s not a demon, he’s a human and he's really hurt!” Katara argued back.  
“Shut up.” Rehen snarled and kicked her in the side, making her grunt in pain. “Well then at least let me heal him!” Katara gritted out helplessly. She earned a vicious slap across the face. 

They relocked Zuko in, this time they bound his legs together and tied them to the pole under him. Clearly they had not missed his kick at Laoh. Zuko was drifting in and out of consciousness at this point. 

The townspeople had started to disperse after Laoh had run off. Once the Firebender had been tied down did the rest of them leave. Maan had to be dragged away from the scene. His feet were rooted to the ground as he watched the two benders. The girl was trying to rouse the firebender to little avail. He was afraid, not just because he saw what the firebender was capable of, but of what had become of his bender friend.

A new man took up his post in front of the benders, cutting off his chances of offering any help during the day. 

Just hang on until night time, Maan prayed as his mom led him away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow this was excited to write! I hope if you are reading this that you are enjoying this story so far! I also hope that you have a good day. Thank you for reading!


	4. Atelihai

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zuko's not looking to good people... maybe Mean come come to the rescue?

“Zuko, you need to melt the ice that's on your skin or else you could get frostbite.” Katara twisted her head, trying to see his reaction.

The only thing keeping him upright was his hands bound to the pole. 

“Zuko.” Katara shook his arms, trying to rouse him.

He groaned but didn’t make any other response. 

The man guarding them paid her little attention.

She continued to shake him, trying to get any kind of response out of him. He needed a healer, badly. She worried about the undoubted broken bones and possible internal bleeding. She couldn’t heal him tied up and with no water, but she could at least try to stop him from getting frostbitten. 

Finally after what felt like hours, did he seem to wake up.

His head was pounding relentlessly and his whole body hurt. He then became aware of someone jostling him. He leaned his head back against the pole and moaned in pain as his midsection angrily alerted him to broken bones.

“-Uko. Zu-. You have to… or you’ll… ostbite.” A girl's words were floating to his ears through what seemed like water.  
“Hmm?”  
“Zuko. You have to melt the ice away or you will get frostbite.”  
“Frosbigh?” He mumbled.  
“Yes, frostbite.”

He remembered reading about frostbite before he traveled with his ship to the Southern Water Tribe. There had been a drawing in the scroll, it hadn’t looked very glamorous. But why would he get frostbite, they were in the Earth Kingdom?

“I accidentally hit you with some frost. You need to melt it.” He hadn’t realized he had spoken out loud. 

Agni his head hurt. He tried to straighten his legs but found that they were tied under him.

His arm was tugged sharply and his mind focused in on that.

“Wou you stop doing that?” He said in response.  
“I’ll stop when you melt the ice.” The voice replied.

Where was he again? Oh that’s right, he was tied to a pole in the middle of nowhere. His arm was tugged again.

“How’do I melt it?” He asked annoyed.  
“You do your thing where you raise your body heat.” 

Do what? Any thought of bending made his head spin. 

Katara was seriously starting to question her decision on helping the Fire Prince. He was stubbornly unhelpful even when he was lucid. Why did she even bother? Wouldn’t it be easier to let him succumb to his wounds? That way they wouldn’t have to worry about him ever chasing after them again. He had caused much destruction wherever he went. Kyoshi Island, the monastery, the Northern Water Tribe, the list went on. 

But, he had also helped them against Azula. The whole time they had been tied together, he had lacked the usual burning anger that usually wafted off of him. He was quieter and had a more calm presence. Something had clearly shifted inside the prince. Katara rekindled her efforts.

Finally she felt his temperature begin to rise. She encouraged him to keep it up. She twisted to look at the patch of ice she had seen on his arm earlier. It was slowly starting to melt. She shifted her arm away from his as the heat became uncomfortable. Finally after a few minutes, the ice melted away and revealed an angry red spot, but it wasn’t purple or black, it looked like just frostnip. Katara let out a sigh of relief.

“Ok, keep it up for a bit longer. Just to make sure all of it melts.” She told him.

It was past noon when she allowed him to cool off. There were still many injuries that needed to be tended to. She listened to his breathing become more and more labored as the day progressed. Blood soaked into her dress from his wounds. Katara knew that none of the townspeople would help her. She hadn’t seen Maan at all after the fight. She grew more and more worried that he had been scared off. She couldn’t blame him though. If he was caught he would be punished severely. Also he had just witnessed a fire fight. When Katara had first witnessed a raid, she had been skittish around flames for months afterwards. 

The sun sunk behind the horizon and the firebender seemed to drift off to sleep. Katara watched the moon rise and prayed to Tui, La and Yue. The guard was eventually lured off by the sounds of merry making a little ways away. He cast a glance at the benders before trotting off to join whatever fun was happening.

Finally when the moon began its descent did and she was drifting off, did she hear the scuffle of feet. Katara went tense, hoping it wasn’t Laoh coming back to finish off the firebender. 

“Atelihai.” A voice whispered out. 

Katara sighed with relief at the traditional Water Tribe Greeting.

“Atelihai.” She responded.

Maan quickly scampered over to her. She had taught him the greeting so she would be able to tell when he was coming and when it was a stranger.

“Are you ok?” She asked the boy.  
“Yes.” He replied and held up a piece of bread.

He offered it to her but she shook her head.

“He needs it more.” She tossed her head in Zuko’s direction.

Maan carefully came to stand in front of Zuko. He looked horrible. His unscarred eye was swollen and purple, he had a cut on his brow, his arms were peppered with cuts and bruises, and his breath was coming in short gasps.

“Zuko.” He carefully nudged the boy.

The prince groaned but didn’t wake up.

Maan nudged him again, a little harder. When he didn’t rouse, he just resolved to shake him.

Zuko blearly opened his good eye to see who was assaulting him. A pair of brown eyes stared at him with apprehension. 

Maan held up the bread. Zuko struggled to keep his head up as he tried to focus on the food. Finally with Maan’s help did he manage to force it down his throat.

“Maan, he needs to see a healer.” Katara whispered.  
“I don’t think anybody is gonna want to help him.” Maan scrawled back over to Katara.  
“I could help him if I wasn’t tied up.” Katara mumbled.  
“How?”  
“I can heal him with my bending.” Katara listened to his rattling breathing and her fears returned. “If he doesn't get real help soon, I don’t know what will happen.”

Maan rocked back on his heels and hugged his legs. He was afraid for his new friend and he wanted to help, but Laoh had said that if he was caught helping, he would be punished. He didn’t realize that Katara had been speaking to him.

“Hmm?”  
“Do you think you would be able to get a few bandages? I can tell you how to apply them.” Katara answered. 

Maan contemplated, if he bandaged Zuko, Laoh would immediately know that someone was helping him. He didn’t want either of the benders to get into any more trouble.

He scampered off to his hut. 

Katara watched him run. 

“He’s not going to help.” Zuko rasped from behind her.

She started a little.

“What makes you say that?”  
“If he’s shmart, he’ll stay out of it. Who know swhat Laoh would do to him if he foun out.” He slurred his words.  
“No, he's a good kid. He wants to help. He can at least cover some of the deeper cuts.” Katara snapped back.  
“I thinks yer too optimistic.” Zuko coughed wetly and spat something onto the ground.  
“Would you leave someone wounded if it meant you got to get out unscathed?” 

There was silence behind her. Katara feared that he had stopped breathing before he replied.

“I dunno know.”

Maan suddenly reappeared. 

Katara looked to see what he had gotten in the way of bandages but was surprised when she saw metal glint. 

He slid down beside her, brandishing a small knife.

“Maan-”  
“I’m gonna cut you free, then you can heal him.” He looked up into her blue eyes.

Her mouth dropped open.

“Maan that is way too dangerous.” She whispered.  
“If you don’t help him, he's gonna die. An I can do somethin about it.” 

Katara opened her mouth to reply but closed it.

“Fine but you have to tie me back up after.”

Maan nodded and started sawing at her bindings. 

After what felt like forever her hands were freed. She surged upright before falling back down. Her legs shook and she became dizzy at the sudden upright position. Maan helped steady her. He came up a little past her shoulders in height.

She stumbled around the pole and landed on her knees in front of the firebender. 

“Oh Tui and La.” she mumbled as she took in his appearance.

Zuko’s eyes had fallen shut again but when she gently nudged him he blinked back awake. He started when he saw blue eyes staring at him and not brown ones. 

“Hmm?”  
“Zuko, I’m going to check you over and see how badly you are injured. Is that ok?” She had switched her tone for a more professional healer tone.

He nodded his head before letting it drop.

Katara immediately tilted his head back up. 

“I need you to keep your eyes open.”

He groaned but peeled his eyes open. She tilted his head to catch some moonlight. His right eye was swollen and the pupil was dilated. She hesitated before checking his left.

“I need to check your left eye, to see if you have a concussion.” She told him.

He gazed at her before slowly nodding his permission.

She gently touched his scar and widened his eye. She could just make out the slight damage that marred his eye. Tilting his head up she watched his pupil.

Yep concussion, not that it is that surprising. She thought.

She turned to Maan. 

“Can you grab me a bucket of water, or a cup?” He nodded and scampered off.

Katara continued her check over the Firebender. When she carefully lifted his shirt to examine his midsection, she noticed that the Prince was pretty skinny, he had obviously not eaten a decent meal in weeks. His ribs were black and blue and blood coated his side and arms. She carefully cooled her hand off and placed them on his midsection. He gasped and hunched forward before groaning and sitting back.

“This will help them stop hurting until I can heal them.” Katara explained.

He nodded through a grimace. 

Since the last time she had seen the prince, his hair had grown longer. It was much better looking than his weird ponytail that he had sported before. If he didn’t have his scar covering half his face, he probably could have easily blended into the Earth Kingdom. Unfortunately wanted posters were posted everywhere for the banished prince and the Dragon of the West.  
Finally Maan returned with a bucket and set it down. 

Katara quickly bent the water into a glove and placed it on Zuko’s ribs and chest. Maan gasped when it started to glow and Zuko’s eyes widened and his mouth gaped as he looked down at where the waterbender was healing him. Maan had seen Zuko use his flame in many ways, but most of it had been fast and hard to track, but the way that Katara moved the water was much smoother and calmer. Both of the boys were mesmerized. Zuko had heard her mention healing, when Uncle Iroh had been hit by Azula, but he had been too angry and pain driven to really listen. Now he regretted it a lot. He could _feel_ the girl heal him. He sucked in a full breath of air happily. 

After a few minutes, she moved her hands to his arms. 

“Wait.” Zuko mumbled.  
“Focus n the internal shtuff, that’ll be less noticeable.” He winced a little at his own slurred speech.

Katara hesitated before nodding. She next went to his head next. Zuko was a little surprised when the water enveloped his head in a cool embrace. But slowly, the headache that he had been sporting since the fight disappeared.

The girl moved and healed different parts of his body, her presence was extremely calming as she worked to revive him. Zuko watched her. Her cheeks had hollowed in from their time in the village. She lacked the muscle that she had the last time he had seen her. This experience had a number on both of them. The thing that had stayed the same was the way she worked the water with her bending. He was soon lulled into sleep.

Katara let herself become fully immersed in her healing. It was calming to be able to bend again. Suddenly she heard footsteps approaching them from her side of the pole. Peeking over she noticed the guard staggering back to his post.

She froze in her healing, the glow fading away. Maan went and sat in her usual spot, hoping that the guards alded mind would see two figures and not have any concern.

Katara hunched behind the firebender, grateful for his broader shoulders that would conceal her.

Katara healed as much as she could as quickly as she could. His ribs would need to finish healing on their own, she had gotten them mostly there but time was her enemy. Finally she sat back and checked the sleeping bender over. He looked far better than he had not too long ago. 

The horizon was starting to light up the horizon behind her. She wished that she could heal the numerous cuts on his arms, but he had a point. It couldn’t be too noticeable. She listened and heard the unmistakable sound of the guards snores. She slowly stood up and nudged Maan.

“Thank you Maan.” She whispered. “For everything.” 

He gazed up at her in wonder.

“That was beautiful.” He said.

Katara chuckled before pulling him into a hug. He happily returned it.

She settled back on her side of the pole and Maan re-tied her hands.

Katara nodded to him and he ran off. 

Healing Zuko had drained what little energy she had left and she happily slipped into a deep sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so I have this head canon that all the different Nations have their own languages or something like that, Atelihai is a traditional greeting for Inuit Tribes people, (so says the internet) and the Water Tribes pull some traditions and some of their traditions from them. I might be over stepping but I like it. Thank you and feel free to leave a comment or Kudos!


	5. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally a real conversation between our two benders. Yes some angst, yes some sass, and yes some nightmare memories.

Laoh gave up on trying to discover who their sympathizer was. His arms were scared from the frost and he had many angry welts. He didn’t come near either of them now. There was now a guard posted all day and night so Maan couldn’t reach them. 

However, one day he rallied a bunch of his friends and they surrounded the benders. They hurled various fruits at them, much like protesters would do with a bad play, and yelled at them for a good ten minutes before a group of grown ups herded them away. 

Zuko silently praised the kid's ingenuity as he chewed on some of the fruit. 

Everyday Katara would check up on him to make sure he was healing properly. Of course he didn’t know what improper healing would look like. She seemed a lot less hostile towards him now and he didn’t hurl any insults. He was actually becoming grateful for the Waterbender’s presence. 

She asked him about firebending and how he trained. It was a nice distraction from sitting around all day. She seemed genuinely interested too. But whenever the conversation looked like it would lead to his family, he found a way to change the subject or just fell silent. Katara noticed this after the first few attempts and finally gave up. 

The way that they taught bending in the Fire Nation was far different from anyway she had seen. They drew fire from their breath and their emotions. Anger seemed to be the primary source though, that would explain why whenever his temper flared so did his fire. 

“What happens if you aren’t angry or can’t find it in you to be angry?” Katara asked.

She felt Zuko shrug.

“Everyone is usually angry at something.”  
“Yeah but, are their other sources as well?”  
“Well other emotions. I guess you could draw from happiness.”  
“Oh but La forbid YoU ever do it.” Katara replied.  
“I can draw from happiness!” Zuko shot back.  
“Really? You being happy, ha I don’t think I’ll ever see the day.” Katara laughed.  
“I'm happy!” Zuko said indignantly and very unhappily.  
“Yeah, when?”   
“Well, when Maan started helping us.”  
“I think you were just grateful, that doesn’t count. When was the last time you were truly, really happy?” Katara asked.

Zuko opened his mouth then paused.

When was the last time I was really happy? He thought.

Ever since he had been banished, he had carried a large amount of anger and confusion. He remembered times when it wasn’t so bad. When his Uncle would train with him or sit with him for tea. He hadn’t been happy in a really long time. Even before he was banished. Oh Agni he hadn’t been happy since his mother’s banishment.

Katara noticed a shift in the firebender. She had gotten pretty good at reading his moods from small movements from his arm and even changes in the air or ground. She had learned how to do this from both Aang and Toph.

“Zuko?” She asked hesitantly.  
“I… I don’t remember.” He mumbled, almost low enough for her not to hear.

At that moment, her perspective of the Prince shifted completely. Even after her father had left to fight, she had still had Sokka and her village. That had kept her happy and with purpose. Zuko, had been banished, by his own father, to carry out a fools mission on the far reaches of the map. Not to mention, his family did not seem like the best situation either. He had his Uncle, but his purpose had been pretty pointless. 

“Zuko, I’m sor-”  
“I don’t want your pity.” There was the voice that had chased them around the world.  
“Fine then, don’t take it.” She zipped back, the mood shifting.

She had grown up with an older brother and now she also had to put up with Toph back at camp. Arguing was like second nature to her, as was sass. If you didn’t learn both those skills early on, your life would be horrible.

Zuko didn’t know how to respond to Katara’s reply. No one had spoken to him like that in years, well maybe his Uncle had but his Uncle outranked him. Then along comes this waterbender girl, who did she think she was?

“Excuse me?”  
“You heard me, if you don’t want my pity don’t take it.” Katara replied.

Zuko stared ahead, his mouth slightly ajar. 

“You can be exasperated all you want, I grew up with an older brother.” She shifted around like she was settling down. “I can do this aaaaaall day.”

Zuko contemplated his next words. He had not planned on this response. His thoughts soon turned to his own sister.

“Is it really that bad growing up with an older brother?” He found himself asking.  
“Well it depends on the day. Most of the time Sokka was fine, but he was pretty sexist before the Kyoshi warriors put him in his place. He always was trying to make sure everyone was safe and prepared. He was the only male in our tribe that was under 60 years old so a lot of that responsibility fell to him, it would go to his head sometimes. I’d just put him back in his place.” Katara replied.

“You two seem to get along though.”  
“We have our differences, but in the long run, we are family and we need each other.” She thought back to the last argument she had had with him. 

It had been over where they should stop to rest. She had wanted to camp near the river so they could get some waterbending training in. He said it was too dangerous because there was a village nearby.

“In the Water Tribes, we value family over everything. Family is what keeps you going during the Weeks of No Sun and they support you when you make a mistake. That’s why it was so hard when our father left. I don’t know what I would do if I lost Sokka.” Katara absently rubbed her foot along the ground.

That had never been the case with his family. Ozai was an oppressive judge that preferred yelling and calling out his mistakes than praising him on his victories. Azula was always better than him at everything, and she treated it as a competition. His mother had been the light of his life next to his Uncle and his cousin. When he lost her, his world fell into turmoil. 

They fell into a contemplative silence.  
-  
The sun set and the moon rose. Katara hadn’t had a good night's sleep since she had gotten here. And each night the moon rose seemed to judge her from its great distance.The memories came everytime she fell asleep. It sickened her when the women who she was watching manipulated the blood of the creatures. This was no doubt a message from Yue or Tui, but to bend another being’s blood? She didn’t think she had it in her to have that kind of control. She prayed for any other sign or way, but the dreams kept coming back.

At least Katara had been able to remember what had more or less led her here. 

She had been leaving town with food for the group when she noticed a man with broadswords running from a caravan of people. They were shouting that he was a thief, so Katara pursued him and finally tripped him with waterbending. He had tried to fight with his swords but that had proven futile because she had the advantage of distance. He had thrown fire at her then. They immediately descended into an intense fight that had carried them far from the road and the town. His face covering had finally fallen away and she recognized they banished Prince. Then, everything became hazy. She guessed that they had hit her and Zuko with the dart guns that they had around their waist.

She had seen some of the guards practice hitting targets with them.

The nights were beginning to cool off more and more as it approached the wet season in the Earth Kingdom. She hoped they wouldn’t get caught out in the rain here. That would be horrible. 

The crickets continued to sing as the long night wore on. She was able to fall asleep for a little bit before mumbling behind her dragged her back to wakefulness.

“Hmm?” She asked, sleepy.

The mumbling continued.

She twisted and noticed that the firebender’s head was slumped and he was asleep. She hadn’t heard him sleep talk the whole time they had been here. 

He seemed to quiet down for a bit before picking back up. It was mostly unitillegable. But she caught a few words. Agni, Father, and No. She tuned him out, Sokka would sometimes sleep talk, she would usually just kick him or ignore him based on her mood. 

She was almost back to sleep when the firebender’s heat soared and she flinched. 

“Hey-” 

The bender suddenly began thrashing against his bindings and yowling. 

“Zuko!” She tried to elbow him without getting singed. 

The guard looked over at them before losing interest.

The prince continued to thrash.

“Zuko, its just a dream, wake up!” She finally was able to hit his ribs with an elbow jab. 

He gasped awake and his thrashing stopped.

“Sorry, you were having a bad dream and I didn’t want you to hurt yourself.” Katara apologized.

Zuko took in multiple shuddering breaths before seeming to calm down some. His body temperature began to lower and Katara took it as a sign that he was more or less ok.

“Thanks.” Came a quiet response.  
“You’re welcome.” Katara hesitated before speaking again. “You know, it sometimes helps to talk about it. Make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Zuko was silent. 

Katara was a little grateful that he had turned down the offer. She didn’t know what his dreams were about or what they meant to him specifically. 

Finally after a few minutes he spoke.

“It wasn’t a dream… it was a memory. I don’t think there is much you can do about that.”

Katara sighed. There wasn’t much she could if it was a memory.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered.  
“It was a long time ago.”

Meaning that this memory had been from his childhood. She shook her head. No wonder he was driven by anger and pain, it seemed to be the only thing he knew.  
-  
Two days later there was a large commotion off at the edge of the village.

Zuko didn’t really care. If everyone went over there and wasn’t paying attention to them, maybe Maan could sneak them some food. The guards had finally given into their complaining about having to use the bathroom and they were allowed to go once a day. Their hands were bound and he had a weird tasting rag shoved in his mouth. It probably had been soaked in the same flame retardant that coated the ropes. 

Katara was slightly interested in what was going on, but it seemed to move outside of the village. It was another oppressively hot day, and there was no breeze. She stared at the small grass plant that was a little ways away from her feet. She watched it for any kind of breeze and none came. She reached for it with her toes but it was just beyond her reach. With an aggregated sigh she kicked at it. It whipped back and then came to stand still again.

That was weird. 

She kicked at it again. It moved again. She slowly pushed her foot towards it, focusing on it. And it slowly bent away from her, she pulled her foot back towards her and the plant bent towards her. 

Am I bending a plant? Katara thought  
.  
Then she remembered the swamp benders that they had met on their way to the Northern Water Tribe. 

“Where there is life, there is water.” A strange yet familiar voice hissed in her ear.

Tui and La dehydration was really screwing her brain up. She continued to bend the plant with her feet. Was this what it's like to be an Earthbender? They used their feet a lot with bending. When she got back to the southern watertribe, she was going to seriously practice some Earthbending moves on the glaciers. 

Finally the commotion was brought back into the village. Zuko spotted the guards, they were dragging two unconscious people towards the pole. He nudged Katara and she twisted her head to try to see what was coming. One guard was twirling his reed pipe around his hand as he hauled his unconscious person up into the wooden plane surrounding the pole.

Zuko glared up at the man as he dragged the person closer. Zuko looked closer and noticed that the person was a young boy. The other guard hauled another young boy up onto the block and they started unbinding Katara and Zuko. They shoved a rag into Zuko’s mouth and hauled Katara up. A third guard carried over a heavy length of chain. They first secured the two boys to the pole, then they chained Katara and Zuko together before repositioning them as they had been before.   
This pole used to be a lot less crowded. Zuko thought as they took the rag out of his mouth. 

The boys were hunched over, with their feet secured under them like Zuko was tied up. 

Katara twisted to look at the boy on her left, he had a small gash in his head but he was breathing steadily. She then looked at the boy on her right and gasped.

“Maan?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun, dun, DUUUUUUN. I was actually really excited to write about them having a conversation. Its *bonding*. Of course Zuko has to have a dream about a memory, can you guess which one? Thank you for reading! Feel free to leave kudos or a comment.


	6. Then There Were 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two now occupants have become pollenates with Zuko and Katara, also some dehydration illusions

The boys did not wake up until the sun had set. Katara guessed that it had to do with the blow darts. Whatever was in them, it was powerful. 

During the day, two mothers had come wailing to the pole. The guards had to hold them back as they fought to get to their sons. Katara’s heart had ached terribly. 

The other boy groaned as he started to come to.

“Take it easy.” Katara said to him as he started to tug at his bindings. 

He grimaced but fell still. 

After a little bit Maan started to move.

“Maan, are you ok?” She asked nervously.  
“Hmm?” He slowly leaned his head back and took in a breath.  
“Where-?”  
“You're tied to the pole with Zuko and I.”  
“The pole… the pole!” He suddenly jerked up.  
“Hey, take it easy.” Zuko grumbled.

Maan looked over at Katara, his eyes filled with fear.

“Hey, you ok kid?” The other boy asked.  
“Feng?”  
“Yeah, I’m tied here too.”  
“Yeah, why are you tied here?” Zuko asked annoyed.

Feng stiffened a little.

Katara thought she recognized him. He had been in the front row at the fight.

“They caught us.” He whispered in realization.  
“Doing what?” Katara asked.

Feng’s head dropped.

“I was so careful! How did they catch me?” He said in despair.  
“Maan, what were you doing?” Katara turned to the younger boy.

Maan opened his mouth but Zuko beat him to it.

“You were earthbending, weren’t you.”

Maan’s head dropped.

“You're an earthbender?” Katara practically cried.  
“I only recently discovered it.” He replied. “Feng caught me when I accidentally did it and he was teaching me.”  
“So you’re also an earthbender.” Zuko directed it at Feng.  
“If you mean an earth demon, then yes, I found out when I was 7.” He replied.

Zuko rolled his eyes at the term demon.

“You're not a demon, you're a bender.” Katara snapped.

She had also grown tired of the term demon.

“Like you two?” Feng snapped back.

“Yes. There isn’t anything wrong with you, it's the village.” Katara replied, finding patience.  
“Yeah well, tell them that.” She heard him grumble. 

Sleep was harder to come by now that there were two more people locked to the poll.  
Not that she really wanted sleep. Katara was scared of seeing more of the memories from the imprisoned waterbender. 

Soon there were snores rising from Maan’s side of the pole. This day had been interesting, that's for sure, and it wasn’t in a good way. With Maan tied up, they had no way to get any kind of water or food.

Eventually her body gave in and she fell asleep. 

_The cool metal floor of the cell seeped through her clothes. She hardly noticed though, she was too busy focusing on the small army of rats in front of her. She flicked her hands and waved her fingers and the rodents danced. She remembered an older song that they would perform on the summer solstice, there was always a lot of laughter and awe as the benders and non benders alike danced to the tune. The benders would keep a trail of water swirling around them the whole time, it was a great way to practice control and coordination._

_She smiled at the rats and started to inflict her will on them. They gave out terrified cries as their bodies moved on their own accord. They reenacted the dance before her, their blood was her play thing._

_Finally she released them and they all fell to the floor, dazed. She smirked as they came to and ran away.  
-  
People came and gawked at the new arrivals to the pole. _

__

__

__

__

It didn’t seem to get old for them.

Meanwhile, the pole occupants were suffering day in and day out. Dehydration was getting to all of them, cramps from sitting for too long were a nuisance, and Katara was positive that her rear end would be permanently flattened if she ever got out. 

If she ever got out.

Another thing to add to her list.

Despair was reaching the new occupants fast. 

She and Zuko had been able to keep a little hope because of Maan, now, that was dwindling away.

Zuko tried to set himself on fire again to get some water, but Laoh came out and ordered them to do nothing.

“If the fire demon wants to cook, let him cook.” He had said.

Zuko’s legs hurt something fierce from having them tucked up under him. The short relief he got when they were allowed to relieve themselves was not nearly enough.

He was starting to see things as well. 

He would look up and see his uncle strolling down the street with a cup of tea. Once he had called out, but that only got a strange glance from Feng. 

He was starting to lose his mind, he was sure of it. 

Katara had her head slumped forward, trying to keep the sun off of her face. She heard a noise, it sounded like it was coming from far away though so she didn’t take much notice.

Then it came closer. It sounded familiar. It almost sounded like…

Her head jerked up towards the sky.

There! There was Appa and seated on the Skybison’s head was Aang.

“Aang!” She cried.

She struggled against her bindings and called out again.

They flew behind a cloud before reappearing. 

“Aang! Sokka! Down here.” Katara yelled at the Bison.

She saw them flip back around, as if searching for the source of the sound.

“Appa! Aang, right down here, I am right here!” Tears of joy were starting to run down her face.

She was saved. They could get out of this horrid town with it’s horrid people. Toph could help train Feng and Maan, and they could get far away from here.

Appa growled and started to circle. She saw a figure point down at them.

“Katara?” Someone called.  
“Yes, Aang I’m right down here!” Her voice was growing hoarse from yelling but she didn’t give up.  
“Katara!”

She struggled more. She couldn’t wait to be up and walking away from here, to run, to be free. To get a nice long cool drink of water, to bite into a juicy kiwipeach-

“Katara!” Someone behind her yelled.

Her head whipped around.

Maan was looking at her frightenedly and Zuko had his neck craned as far as he could to see her.

“They're here! Aang and Sokka and Appa. We’re gonna get out of here!” She said happily through tears.  
“Katara.” Zuko said again.  
“What?” She asked, confused by the solemn look on his face.  
“They’re not here.”  
“Yes they are they’re right-” She turned her head back up to the clear empty sky. “-there…”

She searched the sky, again and again. There was nothing there, just a few birds.

“But…” She trailed off in disbelief. “They were here.”  
“Katara, it's the dehydration. It’s making you see things.” Zuko mumbled. “Making us all see things.”

Now the real tears were streaming down her face. She let her head slump forward and she quietly sobbed.

Zuko had been rather startled when Katara had suddenly cried out. Then he processed the name. He didn’t even care that it was his enemy. He had looked up full of hope into an empty sky.

Then he had realized what Katara was seeing. He felt horrible. There was no one coming. His uncle wasn’t, the Avatar wasn’t, no one was.  
-  
A few nights later, Zuko felt the younger boy moving beside him. Feng was on his scarred side, so it was harder to watch him. 

The firebender shifted slightly to see better, but not enough to alert the Earthbender that he was awake. 

The boy was wriggling his hands around, as if trying to grab something. Next Zuko felt something slither past his hands and feet. He did not move. 

Finally it stopped and Feng sighed. Then he started to tug at his bonds. Something sounded like it was scraping on metal. 

Zuko shifted and looked down at the chains.

Feng had a hunk of rock and he was grinding it against the metal of his bindings and Zuko’s.

He widened his eyes in realization. 

“It’s not much.” Feng whispered. “But I’m not going down without trying.”

Zuko found a newfound respect for the boy. He had tried to weaken the metal with fire, but it seemed to be more tolerant than other metals he had been in contact with. 

The rest of the night, Feng scraped at the metal.  
-  
Katara felt the storm coming before she saw it. And she anticipated it. 

Over the next day, strong winds blew in big gray clouds. It was cold but she did her best to ignore it. Where her arms were looped with Zuko’s were warm. Finally, the rain began. She tilted her head back and let it fall on her tongue. She was aware of the others doing the same thing. 

The rain started to come down harder and she laughed. She loved storms, the power of them.  
The rain also drowned out the noise of Feng’s scraping and he started to do it more rapidly. 

“How much progress have you made?” She asked.  
“Some, it’s slow going but it’s coming.” He answered. 

Zuko mumbled something she couldn’t hear.

“Do you have any better ideas?” Feng challenged.

She felt Zuko shift a little bit before answering.

“That’s what I thought.” Feng mumbled.

The rain worked miracles for her body. 

She thanked Tui and La many times as it continued to come down. Soon, they were all soaked.

“Wait, I have an idea.” Katara said.  
“For what?” Maan asked, he was shivering a little from the cold.  
“When water freezes, it expands. Let me try to freeze the dents you’ve made, maybe it’ll widen it.” Katara explained.  
“Ok.” Feng sounded sceptical but shifted his hands closer to hers.

In order for this to work, they all had to move and shift so she could reach his chain. 

Finally, she had her finger on the dent. It was small and rough, but it was there.

Water dripped into the dent and she carefully froze it. She repeated the process as many times as she could she tired out. Feng fingered the dent and whistled.

“It worked.”  
“Good.”

He continued to grind away.

Feng was finally nearing completion when the guards came for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh no. I wonder what will happen next. Big things are coming, and all good things come to those who wait... Thank you for reading! Feel free to leave kudos or a comment!

**Author's Note:**

> Wow ok here we go. This is my second ATLA work so sorry if it isn't amazing or if it is a little off. I try to stick to canon as much as possible but this is definitely going to go a little off script. This was something I thought of back when I was still in book one is I am adapting it to work for book two. I am a Zutara shipper but because this is based back in book two, I have to let it sit and cook for a little bit. Thank you for reading!


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